Thill-coupling



(No Model.)

H. L. BOYLE.

THILL GOUPLING.

Patented July 261887..

UNITED STATES PATENT .OFFICE HOMER L. BOYLE, OF GRAND RAPIDS, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF, AND LEON CHICHESTER, OF ALLEGAN, MICHIGAN,

THILL-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 367,265, dated July 26, 1887.

Application filed March 28, 1887. Serial No. 232,796. (No model.)

rst, to prevent the rattling of the thills or.

shafts; second, to form a ready means of attaching and detacliing the thills from the buggy; third, to provide an attachment which can be readily removed and which can be applied to the ordinary form of construction without alteration or change of the several parts; fourth', in connection with the objects above referred to, to support or'partially support tlie thills or shafts,`taking the weight from the horse, and, if required, to support the outer ends of the thills a short distance from -the ground. These objects I accomplish by the same on line X X OfFg. l.

means of the mechanism :illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a side elevation of an ordinary buggy-clip and thill-iron to which my invention is applied.4 Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the metallic spring detached from the buggy. Fig. 3 is a plan View of the blank which forms the spring before it has been bent up into the required form. Fig. 4 is a sectional View of Fig. 5 'is a plan View of the intermediate plate, which is placed between the spring and the thill-iron; and Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the spring, thilliron, and connecting-bolt with the ear of the spring and clip-ear removed, in order to show the position of the intermediate plate when in use.

A represents the front axle of the buggy.

C represents the Yc lip', constructed in the or diuary manner and attached to the buggyaxle.

S is a spring constructed in the :form shown, and fitted between that part of the clip which surrounds the axle and the `projecting ears which support the thill-iron. The lower front part of the spring is bent upward, as shown by S', untilit comes in contact with the thil1- iron T. The thill-ironts between projecting ears E E' of the clip, and is fastened by abolt, I, which passes through such projecting ears, which ears do not ldiffer from those in ordinary use, and therefore need no further description. Thelower rear portion ofthe spring may be bent, as shown by B, in order to more securely hold the spring in place upon the clip.

E E represent ears of the spring, constructed in the form shown in Fig. 3, and bent upon the dotted lines F F, so that when the spring is placed in the proper position upon-the buggyclip the ears E E tit over the ends of the bolt which holds the thill-iron to the clip A. The bolt used. does not project beyond the ears of the clip laterally, and the ears E E of the spring,tting over the outer surface of the ears E E', hold the bolt securely in place, so that such bolt cannot be removed without removing the spring S. The rearrend ofthe spring S rests or presses against that portion of the clip which surrounds the axle, while the other or front end presses against the thill-iron which surrounds the connecting-bolt, automatically taking up any wear that may occur either in .the bolt or thill-iron, and thereby prevents any rattling of the parts.

F F are shoulders formed by the projection ot' the spring, and these shoulders rest upon the surface of the ears, and the lower end of thespring,being bent around beneath the thill iron, holds the spring securely in place.

I prefer to construct the spring out of sheetsteel, as I have found this material well adapted to the purpose; but other substances may bev used, and the form of the spring may be somewhat Varied, without departing from the nature of my invention. YIn order to protect the spring S from wear, I design to use an intermediate plate, D, Fig. 5, curved so as to tit upon the thill-iron and between vit and the spring, as fully shown in Figs. 4 and 6. This plate is held by the spring S, so that it cannot move upon suchspring, and thereby prevents any wear upon such spring. I prefer to construct the'plate D of metal; but other material may be used.

The part S of the spring may be dispensed with in case it should not be desirable to support the thill by means of this spring; but I prefer to use the construction above described,

The spring, constructed as described, clasps the thill-iron beneath, holding the shoulders F F upon the projecting clip-ears EE', while the ears of the spring cover the outer surfaces of the clip-ears, thus forming a double spring constructed of a single piece of metal, which can readily be attached and detached from the clip, and subserving the several purposes above named.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim to have invented, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-u f An improved thill'coupling constructed of a single piece of spring-plate, having the lower end of its body portion bent forward and upward for extending beneath the thill and its sides extended forward for forming ears for embracing the ends ofthe connecting-bolt,sub stantially as described.

2. An improved thill-coupling constructed of asingle piece of springplate, having the lower end of its body portion bent forward and upward for extending beneath the thill and its sides extended forward for forming ears 'for embracing the ends of the connecting-bolt, said ears having shoulders for resting upon the clip-lugs, substantially as set forth.

3. An improved thill-coupling constructed of asingle piece of springplate, having its upper end bent upward, rearward, and downward for pressing against the clip-yoke, liaving, also, its lower end bent forward and upward for extending beneath the thill, and having its sides extended forward for forming ears for embracing the ends of the connectingbolt, said ears having shoulders to rest upon the thill-lugs, substantially as described.

4. The combination of the thillconpling constructed of a single piece of spring-plate bent upward, rearward, and downward at its upper end, forward and upward at its lower end, and forward at its sides for forming shouldered ears, and a strip or separate piece located upon tlie front surface of the body por tion of the coupling for receiving the wear, substantially as specified.

5. The spring S, constructed as described, in combination with the buggy-clip, connecting-bolt, and thill-iron, said spring having its lower portion bent upward, so as to support or 'partially support the weight of the thill, substantially as described. l

HOMER L. BOYLE.

Vit-ncSSes:

GEORGE CLAPPERTON, EMILY A. PELTON. 

